Lafebers, Harrison’s, or TOP’s??

[gibson2503]

I have a goffins cockatoo, a jenday conure, and a sunday conure. They are all good about eating pellets. I currently feed them Tropimix. I am thinking about switching them over to Lafebers, Harrisons, or Tops. I am leaning toward Lafebers because I can find it a bit less expensive. I can get 25 pounds of Lafebers for about $70. The others would cost me around $125 for 20-25 pounds. Do any of these three brands stand out far beyond the others as far as quality?

 

[Brittany0208]

Harrison's is renowned for being organic and complete, same with TOPs. I hear Lafeber is good but I've never fed it to my bird. The only pellets I feed him are Harrison's and TOPs. I tried Zupreem Natural but he didn't care for it.

 

[ChristaNL]

My greys absolutely love the nutriberries.
(still expensive enough around here, so it's mostly the boring pellets and some healthy seedmix)

 

[Scott]

I went straight from Zupreem Fruit Blend to Harrison's because of the perceived high quality. No doubt costly but all 8 transitioned well using their on-line guidance. They do waste quite a bit, but this is nothing new!

 

[gibson2503]

I went straight from Zupreem Fruit Blend to Harrison's because of the perceived high quality. No doubt costly but all 8 transitioned well using their on-line guidance. They do waste quite a bit, but this is nothing new!

Ya. My girls waste a LOT of anything they eat. I once read that I should expect 90% of any food to end up on the floor or the cage bottom. I thought it was just something they say, but it has turned out to be so true. My vacuum gets a work out.

 

[chris-md]

Harrison's is renowned for being organic and complete, same with TOPs. I hear Lafeber is good but I've never fed it to my bird. The only pellets I feed him are Harrison's and TOPs. I tried Zupreem Natural but he didn't care for it.

Slight qualification to the statement: tops does not add supplements or extra vitamins to their pallets. Harrison’s does. Important distinction for any birds with sensitivities.

 

[greytness]

Whichever one your fids will actually eat is the right one to give them of the three.

Only 4 of my 13 fids will eat the Harrisons. The rest will eat it if it's disguised inside my homemade birdie bread.

 

[Jen5200]

From your list - I feed both TOPs and Lafebers, and they are good. I’ve tried feeding Harrison’s and none of my crew will eat it - the ingredients look great though. I prefer the ingredients in TOPs, but all of my birds have different preferences so I feed TOPs, Lafebers, Zupreem Natural and Zupreem fruit.

 

[GaleriaGila]

My usual reply...

(apologies to those who have heard it a zillion times.

Harrison's Bird Foods
I feed Harrison's, supplemented by fresh healthy treats. My first, and later, my current avian vet recommended it. My bird loves the pellets now, but to get him converted, my avian vet suggested putting pellets out all day, and putting seeds (his old diet) out for two 15-minute periods a day. That would sustain him but leave him hungry enough to try new stuff. I presume the same technique could be used to get him to eat other healthy stuff, like fruits and vegetables! My guy was eating pellets in a couple of days, and now I can feed a good variety of other stuff, knowing he has the pellets as a basic. Pellets are out all day... fresh treats a few times a day. I also like Harrison's via mail because I never have to worry about out-of-date products.

The Rb has eaten Harrison's for 30+ years.

 

[Laurasea]

I wasn't happy with Harrison, sorry Gail, I wasn't impressed with the ingredients. When I tried it Neptune ate it but mostly turned it to powder in his bowl. I just got an Amazon delivery ten minutes ago!! I had both Tops and Tropican life time pellets. It's night and the birds had already eaten their veggies. But I offered both pellet types anyway. My quaker ate the Tops right away , my rescue tried some and I have hope! She wouldn't eat the Harrison.. The GCC really ate the Tropicana pellets. Neptune too. Penny tried them broken up. I am very very happy with the listed ingredients in Tops! I crumbled both in a side dish for the parakeets to see if they will try them. I love Amazon, speedy delivery!!! On a Sunday!!

 

[LeslieA]

I feed Harrison's in the daily diet with LaFeber Nutriberries and Avicakes as treats. All my birds refused and rejected Tops. Tops pellets tend to be slick, haygrass-based pellets. I cannot and do not recommend them. I tried Tropimix only to have my previous conure toss them aside. Whatever you choose, make sure the pellet size matches the beak size. In addition, make sure the pellet matches the age.

3/8 of my birds are seniors. Often, people don't realize that birds will someday need a senior diet. In fact, most AVs classify a bird as a senior when it has reached "half its attributed lifespan." Based solely on my experience, Harrison's Adult Lifetime needs an addition of the necessary senior supplements while LaFeber offers a senior berry. The costs ultimately are the same.

MOST birds do not reach their senior status for a variety of reasons. If you plan on keeping your birds that long, prepare now when they are more accepting of change. Feed what your bird will eat considering the future.

 

[Laurasea]

Great info! My new pellets weren't slick though, so maybe they changed the formulas. Senior diets that's something to keep in mind. I've learned a lot from all of the posters, definitely keeping me open to new ideas, and new products!

 

[TiredOldMan]

I currently feed Harrisons but not real happy about the soy, peanuts, corn, and salt.

I ordered some TOPs late last week and it should be here middle of the week. I'll find out what the feathered overlords think of them.

BTW Roudybush makes a senior diet.

 

[gibson2503]

Thanks for all the great replies. Now, I have also started thinking of Roudybush. What does everyone think of it?